There are many variables to analyze in order to decide whether refinancing your home loan is to your advantage or not. The new loan terms are not the only things you need to consider. The previous loan’s terms will also have to be taken into account when deciding if refinancing your mortgage loan is a smart thing to do.

What Determines Whether a Refinance Loan is Onerous or Not?

Regarding the new loan, the terms you need to analyze are the following: interest rate charged, loan repayment program, resulting loan installments, administrative fees, closing costs, additional fees and costs. Though these are the main factors that will determine your choice, you need to read both loan contracts thoroughly as there may be additional terms written in fine print that may turn the loan more onerous too.

When it comes to the previous loan, you should also compare interest rates, repayment program and resulting loan installments, fees and costs. But you should pay special attention to prepayment penalty clauses. These clauses are meant to discourage you from refinancing your home loan by charging a fee if you want to prepay your current loan. If your home loan has this clause on it, you’ll need to ponder its amount too in order to decide whether you’ll save money by refinancing.

Interest Rate Comparatives

The main thing you need to compare is the interest rate charged for the money. This will determine whether your loan payments will drop (if the repayment program stays unaltered) and how much money you’ll save by refinancing. By requesting a cash out refinance loan you will get the finance you need but if the interest rate charged for your refinance loan is higher than your previous mortgage and your outstanding debt is still too high, you need to consider if it wouldn’t be cheaper to keep your current loan and request a home equity loan instead of refinancing.

Terms and Conditions

There are other loan terms and conditions you need to consider too. For starters, if the loan repayment program is longer and the interest rate stays unaltered you may save money towards inflation but in any case, you’ll at least benefit from lower and more affordable monthly payments.

Administrative fees are a common way lenders have to compensate for low interest rates. They offer promotional rates in order to attract clients and later, you find out that you have to pay thousands of dollars on administrative fees that if pondered altogether with the loan could raise the rate a point or two.

The same goes to closing costs which usually include legal fees, costs of paperwork, etc. Make sure to get a list of the items that the concept “closing costs” include before signing anything as you may find a surprise like abusive legal fees or hundreds of dollars of paperwork as if they were printing in papyrus.

By: Kate Ross